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Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victim may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated, but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience. -- C S Lewis

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Thursday, 19 July 2012

Peddling That Third-Hand Smoke Fairy Tale

You might remember Craig Dalton. I wrote about him a short while ago and questioned if he is affiliated with tobacco control. I also mentioned that he wants to ban the sale of tobacco in New Zealand. Even if you don't remember him, perhaps you will now. Why?

Dalton: "The World Health Organisation is saying, 'You know, there's this thing called third-hand smoke -- uh, that is a building that has been contaminated probably forever if smokers have been in it because of the cancer-causing chemicals that are there that children may touch and ingest.'"

Emberson: "Are you serious? There's third-hand smoke?"

Dalton: "There is. Second-hand smoke is where you are, uh, are in the same room in proximity to a smoker and you inhale their, uh, sidestream smoke. But third-hand they're saying 'You know we've got contaminated buildings now with carcinogens in them.' So if that's the way health is going, if we're going to say this is so dangerous that's we're contaminating buildings, then logically, we're going to be banning this at some point."

Well, fuck me sideways in a hazmat suit. Now smokers are contaminating buildings forever, according to both the WHO and Craig Dalton. Indeed, "if that's the way health is going," then you know they're all a bunch of shysters. Never heard of soap and water? Some other industrial cleaner perhaps? I can't wait until the guys who do asbestos removal work out they can moonlight decontaminating buildings where someone once smoked.

Look. If smoking a bit of leaf in a paper tube (as Leg-Iron will put it to you) permanently contaminates a building, then so must any fireplace in a home do so, and anyone who cooks food in their home or restaurants are also evil and dangerous contaminators. I do wonder if Mr Dalton considered those sources of smoke while he gnoshed on an overpriced smoked salmon bagel with cream cheese. Yes, that's right, smoked salmon or any smoked food, by his logic are permanently contaminated too. Because the same chemical composition of wood smoke is the same chemical composition that you find in cigarette smoke.

If you're worried about being contaminated by smoke, then anything cooked over an open fire, or anything that produced any kind smoke while cooking will fucking kill you.

"population studies have
not established a definitive link between ... cooked meats and cancer in
humans," but suggests individuals reduce their exposure to PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons).

The rest of the Dr Dalton's interview, which is about 17 minutes long, carries on the same way -- if you can bear to listen to it without laughing yourself to death. He even said that retailers are equally to blame for selling cigarettes as tobacco companies are for making them. Retailers are killing you simply for allowing you to buy cigarettes. They have a choice not to give you a choice. What a humanitarian, eh?